Heat, mechanical failure delays VRE trains

Trains on Virginia Railway Express’ Fredericksburg line are running slow this afternoon because of the heat.

Heat restrictions were put into place this afternoon on the rail line.

Train 309 was still sitting and waiting to depart Washington’s Union Station 25-minutes late, at 5:45 p.m. Wednesday, after train 333 broke down at Crystal City. The train was reported to be on the move again just after 6 p.m.

The air conditioning system on the stalled train was still working while it was stopped, said VRE spokesman Mark Roeber.

Temperatures were hovering in the mid 90s with high humidity when the train broke down.

The delays come days after a Maryland commuter rail train broke down and left passengers stranded it in the heat after its locomotive failed earlier this week.

Car takes down power lines in Woodbridge

UPDATE: Power in the area of the crash was reported to restored after 6:30 p.m., according to Dominion Virginia Power.
---
A car crash in Woodbridge led to about 100 customers loosing power Tuesday afternoon.

The crash happened about 4:30 p.m., at the intersection of U.S. 1 and Port Potomac Avenue, said police.

The car hit a transformer and took down some power lines at the intersection. The unidentified driver was flown to a local hospital after complaining of head injuries. Police said the injuries did not appear life threatening.

The temperature was 93 degrees in Woodbridge at the time of the crash, making for a tough go for rescue workers and motorists sitting in traffic at the scene of the crash.

We’ll have an update on this story when more information become available.

Send us photos from the scene if you're in the area.

Effort launched to combat premature births

One man is out to raise $30,000 for unborn children.

Jonathan Arehart, CEO of Cavendo Corporation in Manassas, was picked by a local chapter of the March of Dimes to lead a fund raising and awareness effort for the March for Babies, a major fundraiser for the organization.

The money will go to help mothers have full-term pregnancies and to deliver healthy babies.

“I’m serving as the 2011 chair for March for Babies because I believe our children’s health is a top priority,” said Arehart. “All babies should have the chance to be born healthy."

Premature birth affects more than half a million babies each year, and those involved with the awareness campaign say that number is growing each day. Babies that are born too soon are susceptible to death or disability, according to Arehart.

A Manassas womens health center is just one of the local organizations that will benefit from the money.

Two Web sites about the organization are available, one in English and one in Spanish, where those interested can learn more information.

Arehart’s Cavendo Corporation provides Web site design, development, hosting and maintenance services for clients throughout Northern Virginia.

As police department turns 40, top cop comments

The Prince William County Police Department will turn 40 next month and they want you to come and celebrate with them.

The party starts at 11 a.m. Saturday on the Sean T. Connaughton Plaza, behind the McCoart Building off Prince William Parkway in Woodbridge. All of the usual outdoor family fun activities are planned, like a dunk tank, face painting, moon bounce and an appearance by McGruff the Crime Dog.

But those who are curious about how police officers do their jobs and those who want to know more about the tools they use will get a behind the scenes look. Scheduled to be on display is the major crimes and incident command unit, Command One, the SWAT team, scuba team, forensic unit, mounted patrol and Marine One – Prince William County’s watercraft patrol unit – just to name a few, according to the county police Web site.

Police equipment, old and new, will also be on display. And so will a chronology of major events in Prince William County’s history. They’ll also have a vintage county police cruiser on display.

The police department formed in July 1970, taking over major policing operations from the Prince William County Sheriff’s Department, said police chief Charlie T. Deane. He was promoted to chief in 1988 but was recruited to the force from the Virginia State Police the same year the department began, when the county’s population was just over 100,000 people.

“We were all very excited about embarking on a new segment of our careers and establishing a new department,” said Deane. “Back then we were all generalists. We had K9s and the motorcycles, but over time, because of the demand for the services we developed more specialization.”

Now nearly 400,000 people live in the county and the department in recent years has seen its fair share of tough cases, including the Lexie Glover case in 2009, the Smith murders in Dale City in 2008 and the Bobbit case in 1993, when at 26, Lorena Bobbit used a knife to sever her husband’s penis.

She was later found not guilty by reason of insanity. Her husband, John Wayne Bobbit, went on to star in a pornographic film after having the organ reattached.

Power outages follow severe storms

UPDATE: Nearly 4,000 customers remained without power as of 11 p.m. The outages were located east of U.S. 1 in Stafford County.

Power officials said they would be restored by 3 a.m.

The number of reported outages grew Tuesday night following a round of severe storms that moved through eastern Prince William and North Stafford about 8 p.m.
---
More than 1,300 customers are without power in North Stafford following a round of summer storms that just moved through the area Tuesday night.

The outages are in the Garrisonville, Aquia and Widewater areas of the county, according to Dominion Virginia Power. Crews are working now to restore power.

Area under severe thunderstorm warning

Lightning is flashing in the sky and thunder is crashing overhead in Woodbridge, as the Potomac communities – from eastern Prince William to North Stafford – are under a Severe Thunderstorm Warning.

The storm is capable of producing quarter-sized hail and winds up to 60 mph, according to the National Weather Service.

The storm has tracked out of the west, from Fauquier County to the Potomac River. 

It comes tonight after the region grappled with temperatures in the mid 90s on Tuesday.

The Virginia Department of Health encourages everyone to drink lots of water and to stay indoors, preferably in air conditioning, for as long as possible.

Temperatures are expected to remain hot throughout the rest of the week, according to the weather service.

Chief dies from colon cancer

The Dale City Volunteer Fire Department lost a long-time member to colon cancer.

Assistant Chief Carl Persing died this week after fighting three bouts of colon cancer during the past five years. He was 53-years-old when he died, said DCVFD spokesman Steve Chappell.

Black cloths have been draped over Dale City’s four firehouses and Persing’s chief’s vehicle, said Chappell.

The department draped similar black cloth over their stations in 2008, after Dale City EMT Cecilia Turnbough died during a training exercise at the Prince William County Public Safety Center.

Funeral Arrangements for Persing are still being worked out.

He leaves behind two children, his parents, brother, sister and the fire department family, said Chappell.

Persing retired from the Manassas City Fire and Rescue Department in 2007. He joined DCVFD as a volunteer in 2001.

During his life, he also served with the Occoquan-Woodbridge-Lorton Volunteer Fire Department, the Metropolitan Washington Airports Authority Fire Department and the U.S. Army.